Parentage: The claimed plant was created in Barcelona, Spain in 1998 as a result of a planned breeding program. The purpose of the breeding program was to develop a low vigor variety with a suitable tree structure, adapted to a high-density production system. The claimed plant is the result of a cross between Olea europaea ‘Arbosana OLINT’ (U.S. Plant Pat. No. 18,598), the seed parent, and Olea europaea ‘Leccino’ (not patented), the pollen parent. The claimed plant was finally selected in 2016 and was given the name ‘Lecciana’. The new variety exhibits high productivity and precocity. Among other important traits, olive fruits are retained after reaching maturity allowing optimum mechanical harvesting with minimum loss.
Asexual Reproduction: Asexual reproduction of ‘Lecciana’, by way of rooting semi-ligneous stem cuttings, was first performed during the summer of 2002 in Bari, Italy. Through 14 subsequent generations, the unique features of this cultivar have proven to be stable and true to type.